1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to tools and more particularly to slotted socket tools.
2. Related Art
As part of the celebration of Christmas, there is a custom to hang strings of lights commonly referred to as Christmas lights. These strings of lights are hung, inter alia, on surfaces of a home, and in particular, under the eaves of a home.
One method of hanging Christmas lights is to nail or staple the Christmas lights to a surface. This can result in short circuiting the light string. Removal of the Christmas lights after the holiday is awkwardly accomplished by pulling out the nails or staples with a pliers.
It has become widely known that cup hooks are useful to hang Christmas lights. As the name implies, a cup hook was designed for hanging a cup by its handle in a quasi-inverted fashion from a surface, typically, the underside of a shelve. A cup hook is characterized by a threaded shank having a pointed tip; a rounded hook portion that is continuous with the shank and a semi-spherical flange mounted orthogonal on the shank. The cup hook is typically made from brass and resistant to rust. Because cup hooks are made of brass, at the end of the holiday, they can either be removed or allowed to remain in place for use year to year.
Cup hooks can by manually installed into a surface by pressing the pointed tip against a surface, such as a fascia board or eave, and rotating by hand the cup hook using the hook portion of the cup hook. This method can be augmented by first punching a lead hole with a center punch and hammer. This method can also be augment by first drilling a lead into which the threaded shank is screwed. Typically, when installing Christmas lights, a few hundred to a few thousand cup hooks are utilized. Turning this many cup hooks by hand into surfaces can be a very arduous task.
Known in the art is US Patent Publication 2008/0061571 A1 to Schopp entitled “Method and Apparatus for Hanging a String of Lights.” This Patent teaches a generally cylindrical socket for use with a broom handle for installing cup hooks. At the distal end of the cylindrical socket there is a depending narrow elongated slot that is centered within the socket. Also at the distal end are orthogonal channels. At the intersection of these orthogonal channels are four chamfered corners. The socket is used by inserting the hook portion of a cup hook into the slot until the flange rests against the four chamfered corners. This socket has the disadvantage of requiring a conformed fitting slot, otherwise the cup hook rattles around in the socket. The socket is further disadvantage by the four chamfered corners minimally embracing the flange and adding complexity to manufacture. The socket is still further disadvantage by lacking any capability to retain the cup hook within the socket against longitudinal motion, other than a precisely controlled slot width that is modicum narrower than the width of the cup hook wire. Accordingly, a user may need to maintain the socket in a prone position at all times during installation, less the cup hook slip out of the socket.
Known in the art is U.S. Pat. No. 6,711,974 B1 to Lin entitled “Positioning Device for Holding a Hook Screw.” This patent teaches a generally cylindrical socket for the installation of hook eyes in conjunction with a hand held power drill. The socket has a polygonal passage that depends from its distal end. A hook eye is inserted into this passage. Near the end of this passage are tapered openings against which the hook eye rests. There are magnets to retain the hook eye within the socket.
This socket has the disadvantage of being complex and costly to manufacture with the employment of magnets to retain the hook eye in the socket. It is further disadvantaged in that brass is a non-magnetic metal alloy and the socket fails to magnetically retain brass cup hooks. Accordingly, a user would have to keep the socket in a prone position at all times during installation to avoid a cup hook from sliding out of the socket. The socket is still further disadvantaged by a hexagonal passage because, it appears that a brass cup hook would rattle around within the socket where there is no magnetic retention force. The socket is disadvantaged by the tapered openings minimally embracing the flange and adding complexity to manufacture.
It is known in the art to retain a thing in a socket using a set screw that is tighten and loosened.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a means to install cup hooks that does not employ manual turning of the cup hook.
There exists a need for a means to install cup hooks that does not require center punching or drilling a lead hole.
There exists a need for a means to install cup hooks that is suited for elevated locations and in particular, under eaves.
There exists a further need for a means to install cup hooks with variable reach as may be needed to suit the installation at a particular surface.
There exists a need for a socket to install cup hooks that is utilizable with a hand held power drill.
There exists a need for a means to install brass cup hooks that retains the cup hook in the means and frees a user from having to maintain the socket in a upright prone position at all times during installation.
There exists a need for a socket that retains a thing, such as a cup hook, without the use of a set screw, or similar structure, that requires tightening and loosening.
There exists a need for a means to install brass cup hooks that distributes back pressure when a cup hook is drilled into a surface.
There exists a need for a means to install brass cup hooks that is easy, quick and inexpensive to manufacture.
The present invention satisfies these needs, as well as others, and generally overcomes the presently known deficiencies in the art.